1. 💣 RANSOM NOTE: 5 PM DEADLINE
Our hearts break for our former morning show colleague Savannah Guthrie and the team at the Today Show, some of whom I worked with closely at CBS News. These are the most difficult of times. And my thoughts are with you.
Day five. No suspects. No forced entry. No cameras smashed — the doorbell camera was digitally disconnected at 1:47 a.m. At 2:12 a.m., software detected a person, but there was no video — they did not have a cloud subscription, so any footage was overwritten. By 2:28 a.m., Nancy Guthrie’s pacemaker went silent. Blood on the doorstep. Ransom notes demanding millions in Bitcoin by 5 PM today. This was professional.
Unlike other recent celebrity crimes, Donald Trump is uncharacteristically concerned. Trump has directed all federal law enforcement to the case, including CBP canine units — the same agency disgraced last week by the Alex Pretti shooting.
The family is anxious to be contacted by the kidnappers. If you have any information, call 520-351-4900.
2. 🎖️ EPSTEIN’S WALLS CLOSING IN
Brad Karp, chairman of Paul Weiss — the most powerful corporate law firm in America — resigned today after Epstein emails surfaced showing he asked Jeffrey Epstein for help getting his son a job on a Woody Allen film. This is the same Karp who cut Trump’s deal last year, giving the administration $40 million in free legal work.
The Clintons testify February 26 and 27. Hillary is pushing for public testimony — she wants cameras. Nancy Mace is demanding a Bill Gates subpoena. Comer says he’s “considering it.” Meanwhile, Treasury Secretary Bessent continues to block $1.5 billion in Epstein financial records that Senate investigators reviewed in 2024. Senator Wyden’s PETRA Act would force their release. Nobody asked Bessent about Epstein at today’s Senate Banking hearing. They should have.
3. ⚖️ BEZOS GUTS THE POST
Jeff Bezos cut a third of the Washington Post yesterday. Three hundred journalists gone. The sports section — eliminated. Foreign bureaus — shuttered. Books coverage — dead. This is the same owner who killed the Kamala Harris endorsement, turned the opinion pages rightward, and watched 250,000 subscribers walk. Democracy dies in darkness. Bezos is turning off the lights.
4. 📉 BANNON: ICE AT THE POLLS
Steve Bannon said it out loud yesterday on War Room: “We’re going to have ICE surround the polls come November.” Same day Trump declared states are “agents for the federal government” on elections. The playbook is in the open.
5. 🌍 DEMOCRACY HITS 1985
Human Rights Watch: 72% of the world now lives under autocracy. Democracy is back to 1985 levels. The US, China, and Russia are led by men with “open disdain for norms.”
🎯 THE PATTERN
A 5 PM ransom deadline. A law firm chairman brought down by Epstein. A free press gutted by its billionaire owner. An open threat to surround polling stations with armed agents. And a world where 72% of the population now lives under autocracy. America is importing the pathologies of the countries it used to warn others about.
